Paul Kelly has been writing locally focused columns for the Pembroke Observer since 2003.
In 250+ columns I have been refused publication only once - in 2005 - ironically over a column condemning Wall-mart's service. And now twice in a row in 2 weeks - but no more.
This week's and last week's column dealt with Pembroke's opposition to the Wal-mart expansion in Laurentian Valley. Both were stopped.
Mr. Kelly has decided to no longer write for the Observer; his last, suppressed column can be found here.
And, just for giggles, here's a Peter Worthington column in the Observer whining about HRCs as a threat to free speech.
I live in rural Ontario in a small town that's had it's own paper (like the surrounding small towns) since the early days of settlers. I always got a subscription, partially to help support local journalists, photographers, keep up with local stuff, etc.
ReplyDeleteSun Media has taken it over and combined all the small communities into one paper. Less news, more money.
There used to be a wonderful back and forth amongst the citizens with letters to the editor with friendly debating on issues. Now - hardly any BUT we have in "huge" print articles by the main journalists of the Sun.
My renewal is up - and I am NOT renewing and I plan to let them know why.
I won't pay for partisanship and I won't pay for the big journalists while the locals lose their jobs.
Now, that's interesting, BCL. As if I didn't have enough to be pissed off at.
ReplyDeletewv="twaff." As in, "a newspaper editor is a person who separates the wheat from the twaff, and keeps the twaff."
Sun Media has taken it over and combined all the small communities into one paper. Less news, more money.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean. My home town paper (also part of Sun Media now since it purchased Osprey) now caries Lorrie Goldstein's excretions. Most people have stopped reading it.
This amalgamation of all the small papers into the embrace of "News" conglomerates is one of the causes of the failure of newspapers as a medium. Small town TV and radio have suffered the same fate. It is much more efficient to have one columnist who writes for all the conglomerated papers. Eventually the "newspapers" become indistinguishable from the paenny savers and advertising flyers. We receive the Scarborough Mirror every Friday on our doorstep. It serves as a wrapper for twenty or so advertising flyers from (among others) Wal*Mart and their ilk. The reason the paper wraps the flyers lies in the law - when so wrapped it is a community paper and can be delivered to households with "no flyers" notices - somewhat like the 10 percenters. The Scarborough Mirror was once a newspaper. It is now owned by the Star and has no content. I await the death of Sun Media, The Star and The National Post as irrelevant.
ReplyDelete